Beat the Heat with FacilityDude’s Summer Facility Maintenance Best Practices

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Facility managers that get ahead of facility maintenance for important systems like their HVAC and repair outdoor grounds and exterior issues will avoid costly expenditures and keep their constituents safe - Dude Solutions CSO Lee Prevost

“While winter is often thought of as the most brutal season for buildings and grounds, summertime’s hazardous heat can be damaging to a facility’s systems, structures and grounds if not proactively managed,” said Lee Prevost, Dude Solutions’ Chief Strategy Officer. “Facility managers that get ahead and stay on top of facility maintenance for important systems like their HVAC and repair outdoor grounds and exterior issues will avoid costly expenditures and keep their constituents safe and comfortable.”

1. Assess the Chiller – Take stock in your HVAC system to determine if it needs an upgrade or altogether replacement. An inefficient system can drain your facility's energy efficiency management budget. Simple monitoring of issues like air filter replacements, refrigerant leaks and the amount of refrigerant used each time through software like FacilityDude can help facility managers identify potential problems and will reduce the need for entire HVAC replacements in the future.

2. Keep the HVAC Reliable – When temperatures tick up into the 90s and 100s, your air conditioning is put to the test, particularly in a larger facility. Maintaining aggressive inspection and preventative maintenance schedules can mean the difference between costly expenditures and uninterrupted service.

3. Give it a Break – Keeping the air conditioner thermostat at a consistent temperature reduces the strain on a large system when temperatures are in flux throughout the day. Another trick often overlooked is simply reducing the amount of direct sunlight that comes through the windows. Pulling blinds down during the hottest hours of the day and planting taller shrubs outside east and west-facing windows will ease stress on the chiller.

4. Don’t Ignore the Outdoors – Whether it’s the grounds or the building façade, extreme summer heat can wreak havoc on turf, sidewalks and exterior windows and siding. As sidewalks can easily crack with extreme temperatures, seal cracks as soon as they pop to help prevent further water damage.

Serving more than 2,000 organizations in the U.S. and internationally, FacilityDude's suite of web-based facilities, energy, safety and IT applications help healthcare, government and membership-based organizations increase efficiency, improve service, and save money for the operations of their facilities.

ABOUT FACILITYDUDE
FacilityDude is a leading cloud-based provider of operations management solutions that provides online tools designed exclusively for the unique needs of maintenance, energy and operations professionals. Serving more than 2,000 organizations in the U.S. and internationally, FacilityDude helps organizations of all types and sizes save money, increase efficiencies, and improve services. FacilityDude is headquartered in Cary, N.C. For more information visit http://www.facilitydude.com.